OTISFIELD — Selectmen told the president of the Heniger Park Association on Wednesday night that it’s time to stop talking about the new 99-year lease terms.
“My intent is to get this in the mail by the end of next week,” Board of Selectmen Chairman Hal Ferguson told Pat Casey, president of association, about the newly-revised leases.
The board spent more than an hour listening to Casey, who attempted to revise lease terms that he said would enhance the value of the town properties for the leaseholders and the town.
The changes included making it easier for leaseholders to negotiate refinancing terms with banks. Casey said “quite a few” leaseholders will be forced to sell their camps under the terms of the new lease.
Selectmen and members of the Heniger Park Reassessment Committee worked the past two years to increase lease fees to reflect what they say is fair market value for all Pleasant Lake camps — whether on leased land or not. The new terms will bump up some leaseholders’ terms from $50 a year to more than $2,000, with the town tax rate tied in.
Heniger Park, the 100-acre parcel of mostly wooded land on the west shore of Pleasant Lake, was left to the town in 1943 by noted Broadway producer Jacob Heniger. His will stipulated that the Board of Selectmen decide what would be done with the real estate.
In 1965, the board drew up agreements allowing people to lease 37 lots for fees ranging from $0 to $50 per year for 50 years. Leaseholders were allowed to build camps, and most did, paying taxes on the full value of structures, but not on the leased land.
The leases expire between 2015 and 2032.
Of the 31 suggested changes to the 99-year lease already submitted by legal counsel for the Heniger Park Association, the board accepted about half of them last month. None changed the approved financial terms of the lease.
The effect of the new leases is expected to raise taxes on the lots from $9,528 to $100,551 annually, based on the current tax rate.
Casey told selectmen this week that the association is concerned about the impact of a 99-year lease being done in 10-year increments because it creates difficulty in refinancing through a bank. The board said it will change that term because it ensures the opportunity for the landlord and leaseholder to meet every 10 years and assess the state of the property or meet new property owners.
Ferguson said the board thought the new lease was a good compromise for the town and the leaseholders. It was never intended to be a moneymaker for the camp owners.
Casey also asked about the “ratcheting” effect of the lease’s increase being tied to the tax rate, saying it could be unfair to the leaseholder if the tax rate goes down one year. The leaseholders will not see the benefit as other taxpayers would, he said.
Selectman Rick Micklon said neither the attorney for the town or the attorney for the Heniger Park Association found anything that was a “deal breaker” in the new lease terms.
Casey was told he could put further concerns in writing to the town’s attorney but it was time to stop talking and get the leases out.
“As far as I’m concerned, it’s done,” Selectman Len Adler said.
The Board of Selectmen received the only signed 99-year lease Dec. 17, 2014, from James McKenna of Arlington, Mass. It was received before the lease was revised.
Under the current terms, those who do not accept the new agreement will have leases extended to no longer than 2040, but the terms could change at any time under a new Board of Selectmen.
ldixon@sunjournal.com
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